Sunday February 19, 2023
Forty two days! Six weeks on the road. Sixty five hundred miles in a jeep and many more in the saddle of a bike. Memories galore. Crazy good!
Really no wind to speak of last evening at all. Just the beautiful ambient soundscape of each wave letting me know that it finished its journey to the beach as I slept. To awaken at 2am and breathe in that sound emanating from the not to far distance is just incredible!
The temp dropped to about 42 degrees which in a sleeping bag was absolutely perfect. Just cold enough to pull the covers up and cocoon myself but not so cold where I didn’t want to get out of it in the morning! As a matter of fact I couldn’t wait to peak my head out the 'front door' to get a glimpse of the ocean.
Simply speechless when I did.
My plan for the day is to ride into San Luis Obispo (18 miles away), grab a coffee there and walk the main streets checking out the shops. Then return to camp by mid-afternoon to soak up some sun on the beach.
As I'm readying the road bike and getting dressed I notice a mom and her daughter having a camping expedition of their own two sites over. They're chatting over a cup of coffee and it's noticeable they have a really warm relationship. I can't help but to wander over and start a conversation. They are locals, less than an hour away and the daughter is headed off to college this year so mom wanted a little bonding time when they could squeeze it in.
I began poking mom's brain a little bit about local spots n such and both her and her daughter were super helpful. Not sure if you guys are checking out the blog but thank you for your kindness! "You have to stop at Sally Loo’s Wholesome Cafe and Coffee." The perfect lead. Exactly what I needed. "Higuera St. is the main drag too, give that a shot."
Off I was!
The road into San Luis Obispo from the camp was pretty much a highway with 65mph traffic alongside me so the ride wasn’t spectacular. Some of the views were of these rolling green hills with cattle grazing on them but other than that just good to spin the legs out. I rolled right into where Sally Loo's was and omigosh the line is out the door! I can see about a dozen people on the sidewalk alone! I dismount figuring I’ll give it a shot anyway...it came highly recommended. I did remember to pack a pair of shoes, "Dudes" beach like loafers so I changed into them. Good look right? The 'ol tight spandex with shoes on. Perfect.
Grabbed a spot on the line outside and chatted a bit with the locals. When I finally made it to the door I could see another maybe twenty people on line inside wow! I really wanna try this but as long as the line is I’ll never be able to explore downtown and get back for some sun on the beach so I called an audible and headed to Higurea St.
There has to be more coffee shops there....
Wow this town is awesome! Upper end shops mixed in with little cool coffee houses. San Luis Obispo has this city-sidewalk feel combined with this vacation-beach-sunny-warm Cali vibe at the same time. I think I could live here!
I walked up and down a bunch of streets to take it all in and pass by the few coffee shops I had picked out on Apple Maps. People walking by are in that weekend - look for a place to eat and shop - mode. The town has such a friendly feel to it. I finally settled on Scout Coffee house with a table on the sidewalk and a real uptempo vibe around it. The girl taking my order was spectacularly sweet with a smile that made the bright decor even lighter. One Maple Oak Milk Iced Latte and I chilled for a bit on the sun drenched sidewalks and pondered a few things:
This is really a beautiful town. I wonder if she's single? If so would she mind if I moved in already? I mean we barely know each other. But her sidewalks are like warm hugs and the stores resonate with me...we get along so easy! She's kinda cute...I wonder if she likes me?
And who says it's necessary to date for awhile? If you love someone that's enough right!? Then again maybe she's one of those "towns" that has hangups that I haven't uncovered yet... I mean don't we all have some!? Maybe she's got something nutty like alternate side of the bed sleeping.
Is it Wednesday!? Which side am I on!? In a 2am sleep state I'd probably walk into a closet thinking it was the bathroom. Geez that could get kinda whacky right?
Or maybe Ms. Luis Obispo has a split personality. Like if I go a few blocks deeper it's whoa! Who are you!!? Have we met? Are you the same person I was just enjoying a minute ago?
I mean little hangups are ok. An emptiness in one store is alright but to many vacant holes in the heart of a city and it might become clingy. Like maybe she's looking for my attention.
I also like a town that kinda resonates with some spiritual ideals too. No - not nutty-cult like stuff but I don't need all that gambling, tattooing, party town vibe stuff everywhere. It has to feel like there's some love in the air. Maybe that's number one actually. Probably should be. No wait! Number one priority is a town with a restaurant that has free chips-n-salsa right when you sit down.
I mean that's a town to marry right then and there!
As for me I don't think I have to many hangups either. I don't leave the toilet seat up or anything. I always give a hug too. A hug a day is like food for the soul. But! Does anyone else like their drinks lined up in the fridge? No? Just me? Oat milk on the left and Iced tea on the right. Think that's a tolerable one though. Right?
Geez navigating relationships ain't easy! I think I need an app for this. Is there a matchdotcom site for ducks?
So I'm still on the sidewalk and kind of cooking my skin now. I should've thrown on some SPF stuff before I left camp. Actually I shoulda packed some SPF stuff before I left home ha! That woulda helped : )
Funny how you don't think of that when it's 22 degrees out though right? I sipped the latte and looked for an alternate route back to camp. Perhaps one a bit more appealing than the buzz of highway highway traffic on the way here. It looks like there's a road that meanders down into a town called Los Osos and then heads along the shore back to camp passing through the town of Morro itself which I haven’t explored. It's maybe five miles longer but that would bring the ride total close to forty which sounds awesome for a warm sunny afternoon. Perfect! I could've sat there for hours just relaxing, but the call of the beach was getting louder inside.
The first five miles felt like pure downhill and I made great time into the town of Los Osos. I almost grabbed a burrito at a local food truck but it was taking forever so I peeled outta there and made way for Morro Bay. Much nicer ride back on these streets...more local and I got to see some of the beach.
Super cool to note: There were two areas that I wanted to cross this major road but there was no real intersection and therefore no traffic light to cross at. However, "they" knew this, so they installed a button on a pole (again where there is no intersection) that you push and these lights along the side of the road begin flashing and everyone stops to let me cross. Wow! So good. Just for pedestrians and cyclists! Nice to be thought of huh!? Go Cali!
I made it into the town of Morro and it was popping! Such a beautiful Sunday afternoon in the mid sixties that brought everyone out.
Fish places, t shirt shops, surf board shops, restaurants...so cool. I was able to ride over to Morro Rock, this big, huge - boulder is not the right word - but not a mountain either - thing that looks like it was in the movie The Goonies and all. It has this pirate feel to it for some reason. Especially in the morning or evening hours when there is this fog bank around the base of it...eerily cool! Paths here have cyclists mixing with pedestrians in a super orderly fashion and you're able to access every place cars are without having to interact with them at all...nicely done.
I returned to camp from the ride and met a retired couple doing their thing and we chatted a bit. Dave and Elsea have a nice camper and jeep just across from me and they spend the majority of their time moving from one campground to another along the California coast. Must be nice! Tuck that idea into the back of my head. Maybe next year!
It was just after 2:00pm and I wanted to get down to the water while the sun was still high to just feel the sand in my toes and that California warmth on me again.
I'm kind of sweaty too after that ride, stinking myself out, which means you know it's pretty bad right? So since this campground has no showers here at all this is my chance to take a bath in the Pacific ocean. I'm calling it a polar plunge even though it’s like 60 degrees out. But the water is only forty-eight! For Californians that's like minus seven. So that's a Cali Polar Plunge for sure.
I had to wade out like a half mile because the beach is so gradual. My toes were numb by the time I got to knee deep.
Yowza!! It is stinkin' cold for sure!! Next year is a Mexico trip cuz this is nuts! But oh my gosh so good to wake me up too! I mean I didn't really think I was asleep? But every cell of me is now hyper alert...instant aliveness to the thousandth degree. My eyes are super wide, the heart is open and pounding fast, everything seems more vibrant for sure! My mind doesn't agree though. Its saying stuff like,
"What is wrong with you dude?" "Don't you see all the surfers wearing drysuits?" Ha!
Jumping in reminded me of someone I know that does this a few times a week as part of a healing process...and she's having great success with it! I can see why because everything in your system gets jolted awake for sure! I guess either jolted awake or goes flatline lol. Wow!
Anyway a good time for a shoutout to Linda Dubois across the ocean for molding her life to the healing and helping of others! Nothing better!
Thank God the sun was still high...so I took a walk to dry off the bathing suit and take the whole beach in...so good.
One end of this beach has the Morro Rock protruding from the bay and the other has this green, rolling-hills visual that looks like Ireland or something. There are also these rocks in and around the sand here that kids are playing amongst. The tide is way out here now and there is so much sand to play in for them. Not quite the white sand of home or SeaGrove FL. - but beach sand just the same!
Speaking of sand, as I'm strolling along and looking at it...wow! There are seashells all over here. No wait! Not just seashells but sand dollars!
Wow! So neat! There's designs on them too! Who etches all these little flowers on them and then tosses them back into the sand like that? Ha! This happens naturally? Like...how?
I mean we could sell these! For way more than a dollar too! Prices are nutty lately right? On everything! I wonder if Sally selling seashells by the seashore is aware of inflation? She should raise the price of a sand dollar shlightly to like two dollars for shore : )
Gives me an idea. There is a local salon across the street from our bike shop back home. Suzy could surely shower shore lovers back home with sum shweet sunshine by selling some shiny sand shells in the shmore section of Serenity Nails and Shmore. SheShouldSellSheShells! Wow that is a mouthful. They are close to the seashore too. I'll ask.
But wow these are just awesome! Ha like Paula and Suzy! Perfect! Watcha think!?
I jogged back to get the blood moving after that cold plunge and relaxed in the $15 supermarket beach chair to soak up some vitamin D.
So nice to relax. Feeling great. A forty two mile ride in the sun, with a latte mid stream followed by an ocean 'swim' in California and now relaxing in the sun.
I'd call it a good day.
After an hour or two I decided to head back to the tent and change into warm clothes before it got cold and have a little guac-n-chips in the tent while the sun goes down too...
There is no wifi or cell service here but I'm able to type some of this up into a word document on the laptop as I sit in the tent above the dune line, feet dangling outside of it. I'm looking clear to the sun setting over the ocean. Waves lapping onto the sand.
Pinch me.
Life is good.
So blessed.
Inside
A real sense of accomplishment was washing over me, along with some exhaustion as I sat in the beach chair. Kind a monumental journey both in and out to make it here and there is a mixed sense of relief, pride and bittersweetness swirling around in there.
Outside
So many great days but today...truly a day to remember. Riding around California and camping on the beach after six weeks of traveling is just the perfect capstone to a really cool trip.
Upside
Warm sunny weather hit at a perfect time to camp out here. It could be rainy. I heard there is snow actually in the forecast in a few days. It could be colder. But it's not. It's absolutley perfect.
downside
Not even going there today.
Every Which Way But East.
Might only be one of these left! After packing up tomorrow and exploring by jeep some of the towns nearby I plan on heading to LA to visit with my cousin. A buddhist Monk.
For real!
That would be the end of traveling west...and the end of the blog.
Guess that's the bitter of bittersweet.
Good Morning!
Some rolling green hills behind the campsite....really lush green gorgeous.
Morning beach view.
A great shot just up the beach from the campsite looking back at Morro Bay.
The road to San Luis Obispo
Such a great street vibe to the town....
Cyclists really get the royal treatment here...
A Catholic missionary set in town here.
Sitting outside Scout Coffee shop soaking in the warm rays!
Cycling back towards camp.
Not just a shoulder...a lane for me!
The paths around Morro Bay and the big rock!
Finishing the ride back to camp and seeing the jeep in the distance.
I had to walk seemingly a half mile just to get my knee wet lol. So difficult to lay the whole body down in shallow water too when it is so cold!
Feeling' awake now for sure!!
A sand dollar! Gotta be worth more than that.... : )
More beach shots...
Below you can see the jeep in the distance....the tent facing the water for sunset views...
My cocktail hour view
This gentleman was taking a bunch of photos mostly as a hobby and asked for mine. He loved the set up I had going on. Super cool peoples and then handed me a polaroid shot of me up in the tent so I could have it too...
WOW.
No words.
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